Lemonia sibirica Wnukowski, 1934

Prozorov, Alexey M., Prozorova, Tatiana A., Volkova, Julia S., Yakovlev, Roman V., Nedoshivina, Svetlana V., Pinzari, Manuela, Pinzari, Mario, Scalercio, Stefano, Bianco, Giovanni, Saldaitis, Aidas, Hausmann, Axel, Revay, Edita E. & Müller, Günter C., 2022, Revision of the Lemonia taraxaci complex, with a description of a new species from Italy and clarification of the status of Lemonia strigata (Lepidoptera Brahmaeidae: Lemoniinae), Zootaxa 5195 (4), pp. 337-360 : 342-343

Lemonia sibirica Wnukowski, 1934 stat. rev., bona sp.

( Figs 18–23 , 52 , 64–66 , 94–96 , 114–115 )

Lemonia taraxaci ssp. sibirica Wnukowsky, 1934 , Entomologische Anzeiger, XIV, 112. Type locality: Russia, Novosibirsk Oblast, Ozero-Karachi, 55.3493° N, 76.9692° E and Russia, Altai Krai, Kornilovo , 53.5160° N, 81.0647° E. Syntypes 3♂, two of them are syntypes of Lemonia taraxaci ab. immaculata Wnukowsky, 1926, not examined.

= Lemonia taraxaci ab. immaculata Wnukowsky , 1926, Proceedings of the Tomsk State University, 77(2), 144. Type locality: Russia, Novosibirsk Oblast, Ozero-Karachi, 55.3493° N, 76.9692° E. Syntypes 2♂ (Tomsk State University), not examined. Invalid infrasubspecific name .

Diagnosis. Lemonia sibirica is an East European to South Siberian lowland species related to forest steppes and steppes. It has a 2.18% gap analysis distance from L. taraxaci and 3.30% from L. italiana sp. n. ( Fig. 115 ). Externally and morphologically variable, no reliable characters were found to distinguish it from closely related species.

Variability. Wnukovsky described the wing color of the type males as gray-green instead of pale-ochreyellow (“grau-grüne (anstatt hell-ockergelbe) Färbung,” 1934: 112) but no gray-green L. taraxaci adult is known to us from any location, only pale yellow to vivid orangish yellow ( Figs 18–23 ; see adult from Nizhny Novgorod Oblast in Rennwald & Rodeland, 2022). Probably, Wnukovsky described somehow damaged or accidentally dyed specimens available. Discal dot slightly varies in size ( Figs 19 and 23 ).

Uncus in male genitalia ( Fig. 52 ) varies with no system ( Figs 64–66 ), even specimens 18 km far from each other are different ( Figs 65 and 66 ).

Spurs on tarsi vary in number and size without any system ( Figs 94–96 ).

Distribution ( Fig. 114 ). The subspecies flies from South Siberia ( Knyazev, 2020) west to Central Russia and then probably further to Poland, Belarus and Ukraine, the western border is not clear and further DNA investigation is needed. We consider it may lie along the Ore Mountains, the Sudetes and then the Carpathian Mountains, records close to both sides of the mountains are known ( Székely, 2010, 2012, 2018).

Taxonomic notes. 1. Antoshin and Zolotuhin (2011) synonymized L. taraxaci sibirica with L. taraxaci . Here we reconsider the taxon status as bona species based on a 2.18% gap analysis distance between L. sibirica and L. taraxaci and the distribution border along the Ore Mountains, the Sudetes and the Carpathian Mountains, this border may be related to the last glaciation periods.

2. A population from Romania (BOLD:ADF0319) is the nearest neighbor of L. sibirica (BOLD:AAU1316) at a 1.76% distance, this data should be checked and compared with L. taraxaci as well as with L. strigata .

Material examined: Russia: numerous ♂ and ♀, Middle Volga, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Radishchevo , 10– 12.VII.1993, leg. Dantchenko, slide 14404 ( MWM / ZSM; CGM) ; ♂, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Shilovka , 54.05299° N, 48.64579° E, VII.1995, leg. V. Isaeva, slide Lemon-18 ( CGM) ; 2♂, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Srednikovo , 52.95755° N, 48.0896° E, steppe, 6.VIII.1995, leg. V. Zolotuhin, slide Lemon-19 ( CGM) ; 2♂, Omsk Oblast, Russko-Polyansky District , 2 km SE Buzan, 53.9111° N, 73.9586° E, steppe near Betula grove, 13.VIII.2010, leg. S. Knyazev, BOLD 2011.47, 2011.48 ( CSK) ; ♂, Omsk Oblast, Cherlaksky District, Krasnyi Oktyabr , 54.1335° N, 75.01827° E, 17.VIII.2009, leg. O. Kholodov, BOLD 2011.49 ( CSK) ; ♂, Novosibirsk Oblast, Karasukskiy District, Lake Krotovo , 53.73046° N, 77.86765° E, 15.VIII.1981, leg. V. Dubatolov ( ZISP) .

Figures

FIGURES 12–23. Adults of Lemonia spp. 12–17. L. taraxaci. 12. Male, Czechia, Prague (CGM). 13. Male, Hungary, Jósvafő (CGM). 14. Male, Slovenia, Osp (CGM). 15. Male, Croatia, Rovinj, slide 14.441 (MWM/ZSM). 16. Male, Croatia, Zadar (CGM). 17. Male, Croatia, Mosor (CGM). 18–23. L. sibirica. 18. Male, Russia, Omsk Oblast, Krasnyi Oktyabr, LBEOW999-11 (CSK). 19. Male, Russia, Omsk Oblast, 2 km SE Buzan, LBEOW997-11 (CSK). 20. Male, Russia, Novosibirsk Oblast, Lake Krotovo (ZISP). 21. Male, Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Radishchevo (CGM). 22. Female, Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Radishchevo (CGM). 23. Male, Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Radishchevo, slide 14.404 (MWM/ZSM). Scale bar – 1 cm.

FIGURES 52–57. Male genitalia of Lemonia spp. 52. L. sibirica, Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, slide Lemon-18 (CGM). 53. L. taraxaci, Croatia, Rovinj, slide 14.441 (MWM/ZSM). 54. L. italiana, paratype, Italy, Calabria, slide Lemon-6 (ZSM). 55–56. L. strigata strigata, N Macedonia, Prilep, slides 14.449, 14.447 (MWM/ZSM). 57. L. strigata deucalion, paratype, Greece, Andros Island, slide 14.547 (MWM/ZSM). Scale bar – 1 mm.

FIGURES 58–73. Unci of Lemonia spp. 58–63. L. taraxaci. 58. Switzerland, Andermatt, slide 14.528 (MWM/ZSM). 59– 60. France, Vallée du Queyras, slides 14.529, 14.539 (MWM/ZSM). 61. Italy, Trento, slide Lemon-10 (ZSM). 62. Hungary, Bükk Mountains, slide 14.405 (MWM/ZSM). 63. Croatia, Rovinj, slide 14.441 (MWM/ZSM). 64–66. L. sibirica. 64. Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Shilovka, slide Lemon-18 (CGM). 65. Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Srednikovo, slide Lemon-19 (CGM). 66. Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Radishchevo, slide 14.444 (MWM/ZSM). 67–73. L. italiana from Italy. 67. Paratype, Lazio, Olgiata, slide 14.549 (MWM/ZSM). 68. Paratype, Lazio, Casaccia, slide Lemon-17 (CGM). 69. Paratype, Calabria, Fosso Cucolo, slide Lemon-5 (ZSM). 70. Paratype, Calabria, Silvana Mansio, slide Lemon-6 (ZSM). 71. Holotype, Calabria, Silvana Mansio, slide Lemon-7 (ZSM). 72. Paratype, Calabria, Silvana Mansio, slide Lemon-8 (ZSM). 73. Paratype, Calabria, Silvana Mansio, slide Lemon-9 (ZSM). Scale bar – 1 mm.

FIGURES 88–98. Legs of Lemonia spp. 88–93. L. taraxaci. 88. Male, Croatia, Rovinj, slide 14.441 (MWM/ZSM). 89. Male, Hungary, Bükk Mountains, slide 14.405 (MWM/ZSM). 90. Female, Hungary, slide 16.969 (MWM/ZSM). 91–92. Males, France, Queyras Valley, slides 14.529, 14.539 (MWM/ZSM). 93. Female, Hungary, Nógrád, slide 14.543 (MWM/ZSM). 94–96. Males of L. sibirica. 94. Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Shilovka, slide Lemon-18 (CGM). 95–96. Russia, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Srednikovo, slide Lemon-19 (CGM). 97–98. L. italiana. 97. Male, Italy, Basilicata, Madonna di Sirino (ZSM). 98. Male, Italy, Lazio, Olgiata, slide 14.549 (ZSM). Scale bar – 1 mm.

FIGURES 114–115. Principal differences between L. taraxaci (light blue), L. sibirica (dark blue), L. italiana (purple), L. strigata strigata (yellow) and L. strigata deucalion (orange): 114. Distribution map (for details visit https://bit.ly/3uNyQ5E). 115. Gap analysis distances (taken from gap analysis tool on BOLD, %) and a phylogenetic tree (uniform rates, 500 replicates from MEGA11).